Srinagar: Kashmiri apples are in strong demand in markets across the country ahead of Diwali, but growers and dealers say supplies are falling short after a fungal scab outbreak damaged a large part of this year’s crop.
Zahoor Ahad Tantray, general secretary of the Kashmir Fruit Growers and Dealers Association, said festive buying has been robust, particularly for large Grade A apples sold in gift packs. The problem, he said, is that the fruit reaching the mandis is not good enough to meet it.
According to Tantray, both primary and secondary scab spread widely through orchards this season, sharply lowering the quality of the harvest. As a result, a far bigger share of the arrivals are Grade B and Grade C apples. He estimated that between 50 and 60 per cent of the apples now reaching the market fall into these lower grades, for which there are few buyers.
The shift has hit growers hard. Tantray pointed out that it costs the same to produce an apple regardless of its grade, but only Grade A fruit earns a worthwhile return. With quality down across the board, he said, growers, traders and buyers are all worried about the season.
Not everyone in the trade is unhappy, however. Mohammad Sohail Tanveer, a dealer from Bihar, said prices were fair and that good-quality fruit was still coming in, helped along by festive demand. A wooden crate is fetching around Rs 1,300, while a cardboard carton is selling for up to Rs 600, he said.
Tanveer added that the mandi remains busy, with roughly 400 to 500 truckloads of apples leaving it every day.
The squeeze leaves Kashmir’s apple trade in a mixed position this Diwali. Premium fruit is commanding good prices, but there isn’t enough of it. Meanwhile, growers are left with a large share of lower-grade apples that cost just as much to produce and fetch far less at market.